Sharon Olken

Sharon Olken is the Executive Director of Gateway Public Schools. In 2000, Sharon joined Gateway’s faculty as a Humanities Teacher. Since then, Sharon has been a Lead Teacher, Dean of Faculty, and served as the Principal of Gateway High School for seven years. During her tenure as principal, Gateway was recognized as a California Distinguished School and as a top-performing charter high school by the US Department of Education. In 2011, Sharon helped launch Gateway’s second school, Gateway Middle School. Sharon is inspired by the potential of young people and by Gateway’s amazing teachers and staff, who help students get on the road to college. Sharon earned her B.A. from Harvard University, where she was captain of the varsity soccer team, and earned her M.A. in Education from Stanford University. Sharon taught a course in the Stanford Teacher Education Program called “Educating for Equity and Democracy,” and worked for Senator Feinstein for two years before beginning her career in education. Sharon is proud of her Bay Area roots, her San Francisco Giants, and her very well behaved dog, Cody Ross.